Sprouts everywhere!

After clearing a load of 'sprouts' last night I have come into my office this morning and I can see lots of them lurking all over my desk! Granted some have been hidden by well placed folders and other things, but they're still there - waiting to be dealt with :-(

Off to parent and toddler group now and so plan to tackle them this afternoon - rather than procrastinate and put off doing them for another day....

Sprout update...

Well I have eaten lots of sprouts tonight (see earlier post if confused)...

Sprout 1: Completing travel insurance claim - in envelope ready to be posted
Sprout 2: Sorting out bank statements
Sprout 3: Filing away other 'important' papers
Sprout 4: Buying wedding gifts online
Sprout 5: Unpacking suitcase from Quinta
Sprout 6: Moving bags of work stuff from hall up into office
Sprout 7: Putting away huge pile of laundry

Other sprouts: washing dishes, doing washing and changing from winter to summer quilt...

Not a bad evening after all.

Next time though...eat sprouts when they appear!

"You're not leaving the table until..."

I hate sprouts. Always have done. And I think probably fair to say always will do. Jazz them up anyway you want but they're still sprouts so I will not be convinced to eat them.

When I was younger my mum would often put one sprout on my plate and tell me to eat it. I'd complain, eat the rest of my dinner and stubbornly refuse to put the sprout in my mouth. But I was firmly told I wasn't allowed to leave the table until I had. I'd strop some more and appeal to my dad, without any success. Then after a fair amount of time I came to realise that if I wanted to go back and play etc I just had to eat it. By this time it was cold making it even worse.

Looking back the most sensible thing would have been just to eat the wretched thing before anything else getting it over and done with. Then I could have enjoyed the rest of my food and left the table a lot earlier to go and play.

Why I am reliving my childhood nightmares? Good question! Well I think I can learn something from it...

I have just come in from work and the plan for this evening is to "catch up on stuff" - the list is long! The reason it's so long is because I have been putting things off and they're things which need to be done. On my dining room table I have piles of things that need to be sorted, some of which have been there for a few weeks now. The problem is every time I see them I'm like - "I need to deal with that" and they're just there - doin' my head in!!!

So tonight I'm going to see how much I can tackle. And in future I'm going to make it my motto to try and do those tedious jobs when they arise...a bit like eating the sprout first.

Books...

When I was younger I was always reading, and loved it. Mostly fiction - I read the Famous Five series over and over again. In my teenage years I started to read Christian missionary biographies after going on my first Christian camp with WEC international (mission organisation whose aim is to take the gospel to the unreached people groups in this world). These books really caught my attention. Here were people giving up homes, families and friends to go overseas and tell people about Jesus, having to learn new languages, cultures and adjusting to sometimes going without the basics. It was reading these books that made me think every Christian had to go to Africa to be a missionary! (I did go to Africa, to Senegal, when I was 19 for 5 weeks, if I was going to have to go for life then I'd better get used to it! Thankfully my assumptions were corrected!)

As I've got older I go through phases of reading books...Bex got me into reading fiction books again when we were on holiday one year. Basically I was sitting by the pool one day bored so she gave me a book to read. I think it was to keep me quiet! But it worked! Now though I can only pick up a fiction book if I know I have lots of time to read it as I get into them and don't want to put them down.

Over the past few years I've been introduced to some books at college that have really changed my thinking on things...
'God's Big Picture' - Vaughan Roberts
'No other God' - John Frame
'Why I'm not a Calvinist' - Jerry Walls & Joseph Dongell**
'Fruit that will last' - Tim Hawkins
'Shepherding a Child's Heart' - Ted Tripp
'Standing on the Promises' - Doug Wilson
'The Case for Classical Education' - Doug Wilson
'Teach them Diligently' - Lou Priolo

**For those of you who may be worried (!) I didn't agree with the arguments put forward in this book. But not agreeing with them help me work out what I did think.

I haven't read much since my days in college which I know is not a good thing. I don't put time aside in my work diary to read. I know I should as it will keep me fresh. And then when not in work to be honest I'd just rather put on the TV or watch a DVD - something a bit mindless.

However, I have recently come across a book that I think I will be adding to the list above. 'You Can Change' by Tim Chester. If you're a Christian reading this then I'm sure you will, like me, struggle with sin. Stuggle with those behaviours and attitudes that you know are not pleasing to our heavenly Father. I want to change. I want to be different. I want to be more like the Lord Jesus. I want to please the one who gave his life for me. I have tried. I have failed. I have tried again. I have given up trying maybe I'm never going to change in this area.

Well, in the introduction section Tim writes, "You may be a new Christian, struggling to change the habits of a former way of life. You may be an older Christian who feels as if you've plateaued: you grew quickly when you first believed, but now your Christian life is much of a muchness. You may be a Christian who's fallen into sin in a big way and you're wondering how you'll ever get back on track. You may be helping other Christians to grow and you can tell them how they should live, but you're not sure how to help them get there. This book is about hope. It's about the hope we have in Jesus...." (p.12)

As I read the above and started to read the 1st chapter 'What would you like to change?' I thought this book will help me. Not help me because Tim is God, but help me because what Tim has tried to do in his book is, "connect the truth about God with our Monday-morning struggles" (p.12).

I am, if I'm honest, a little bit nervous about reading it. Nervous because I know I am going to be challenged. I'll see how I get on, I might even blog about it a bit more...

I have no children of my own.

But God has blessed me with hundreds of Tranmere children every week. And that makes me smile :-)

Working for a church

Three posts in one day...I really need to speak to some people tomorrow!

Am coming up to the end of my three year contract at church and over the past few weeks have been reflecting on that time. Unlike a lot of people, before going to Bible College I'd never worked for a church before, yes I'd been involved in lots of aspects of church life but I'd never been part of the staff. And I've learnt a lot over these past few years!!!

Working for a church is very different to any other job I've had before - teaching, pharmacy assistant, plus other part time jobs in a supermarket, chemist and cafe.

And over these next few posts I will try and 'articulate' what I've learnt...for what it's worth.

The 1st thing I've really come to appreciate is this: My job has eternal consequences. Let me explain...I get to spend time with children and tell them the good news of Jesus - which is basically Jesus died on the cross taking the punishment for people's sin so that we can be forgiven by God and be friends with him.

This is huge because one day these children will meet their maker and God will punish sin. So on that day it won't matter whether these children have passed their SAT's tests or how far they have progressed up the career ladder or if they live in the most desirable area of town. What will matter is whether they are trusting in Jesus as their Saviour and Lord. And how does someone know what sin is, know that God will punish sin and know that Jesus has offered to take that punishment for sin, unless someone tells them?

Working for a church means that I have more hours to do the above.

But that does mean that when I am having a 'bad day' for whatever reason maybe I'm tired, or my mind's on something else, or I'm just really unproductive, then I feel guilty. Now I know that everyone has bad days in whatever job they do. When I was a teacher I used to have them quite often! But when I taught a particulary bad maths lesson or lost my temper with the kids then it never really played on my mind much. I'd evaluate and do things differently next time.

I know God is much bigger than me and is in control and so on. And I know that if I have a bad day and get something wrong, or don't do something well, then God is still in control. But I'm still learning how to deal with those feelings of guilt.

Does that make sense?

After a nice 'pj morning' watching cash in the attic and talking to Sarah, I went to Cheshire Oakes and had a potter round there. I picked up some holiday brochures for me and Bex. We've got a joint account (long story!) and we decided after we'd been to Majorca a few years ago that we'd save each month for our next holiday - which is what we've been doing. Not sure when we'll go or where but as the sun was shining it made me think of holidays so I picked up some brochures :-)
I then spent an hour and a bit in Borders, this was mostly due to Dave ringing me and me sitting on a comfy chair whilst talking to him. I like books! And I like the idea of reading lots of books, but I never seem to get round to it. I don't have a very long concentration span!
As it was such a nice day I didn't want to go straight home so went to Parkgate, which has the best ice cream shop on the Wirral. It would have been stupid not to have one!
I do love the Wirral. I love being by water so like the fact that the coast is on three sides. West Kirkby Marina is my favourite place on the whole Wirral, don't know why, it just is, if you've been to visit you'll have been taken there.
Now I've going to watch 'The Bourne Supremacy' and have a curry. I don't often spend my day off on my own, but today has been a good one.
Work tomorrow...

Days off...

I've been back from my 'vacation' for just over 2 weeks. I came back to some 'hassles' which needed to be dealt so this past fortnight hasn't been the best! Today though is a good day. Because today is my day off. Not really sure what to do. Haven't planned anything...might go off somewhere random - like Llandudno, could go for a walk somewhere nice or I might just have a pj day! Who knows!

On vacation...as the Americans would say!

Tuesday 3rd March arrived and at 6:30 a.m. I was all packed and ready for my lift to arrive to take me the airport. Chris arrived on time and I was fairly calm going to Machester and only checked that I had my passport and tickets three times.

The flight to Philadelphia was probably the best trans Atlantic flight I've ever had. I had the middle four seats to myself which meant I could stretch out. I watched 'Australia' and sobbed, 'The Dark Knight' and spend half of it behind my pillow and then 'Mamma Mia' and found myself singing along. It would not have been a pleasant trip for anyone sitting next to me!

Janette and Owen came to pick me up from the airport, and that's when my vacation really began and I started taking photos!

Owen loves 'The Wiggles' and 'Blues Clues' and would just sit cross legged glued to the tele! This was very helpful when I watched him whilst Janette had to go into work for a meeting and the carpet fitters were making a huge amount of noise in the basement which woke Owen from his afternoon nap!

Whilst Owen watched the tele I entertained Nathan...

We went to the Mall and Owen went on the train which he loved...

...but wasn't very happy when he was put back in the pram :-)

Nathan hanging out in his pack 'n' play...

Nathan sleeping...

and chillin'...
On our way back from the outlets...

Whilst I was there I went to Eddie's 5th birthday party (Janette's nephew). The party was at Eddie's grandparents house and all his aunts, uncles and cousins were there. It was absolutely crazy but a lot of fun!!! Owen had lots of fun playing out in the garden whilst I sat on one of those garden hammock swings with Nathan.

Whist we were there went for lots of walks which was a good job as we ate out a lot...

In Applebees...

In Cracker Barrel, which I think was my favourite!

I could eat pancakes and syrup for breakfast every morning...

...and then a Five Guys Burger for lunch!!!

Another photo of Nathan. And Owen helping trying to pick Nathan up which he wasn't too impressed about!

But didn't seem to mind Owen helping at bathtime.

Had a really great holiday, felt really relaxed and chilled. Loved seeing you guys, thanks for letting me come and stay :-) I'll be back to visit again soon....

From across the pond...

Well I finally got here and having a great time with Janette, Jon, Owen and Nathan...

Owen has grown so much in a year since I last saw him when over last Christmas. He's such a lovable little man who knows his own mind. It's very amusing watching Janette deal with the "no's"! He doesn't like being cuddled but does enjoy me singing 'head, shoulders, knees and toes', unlike his mother, she's never been a fan of my singing!!! I've been called 'nana' ever since I arrived, which is followed every time by, "I'm not nana, I'm Dawn". I mean, he can say squirrel , which in my opinion is a much harder word to say than Dawn!


Nathan is just as adorable as his big brother and still at the age when he likes to be cuddled, so I'm taking full advantage. He's a very content and happy little baby and takes the cutest pictures!

More to follow when I arrive home!

This Monday I start 3 weeks (less one day) of annual leave which I am very much looking forward to. I plan to sleep, go on holiday (yeah!), catch up with people, write some letters, go on long walks, play with my godson, complete one of the many cross stitches I have started, read my Bible, think through some things, take my dad out, check out the malls, catch up with writing my diary and re-assess my life plans. Three weeks may not be long enough!!! But those are my plans.

I wonder though how tired I'll be when I start my annual leave as this week is mental both in work and at home! I have a pile of "must do before I am on annual leave" things to do on my desk, lots of things to file / put away - including a Spiderman paddling pool, washing to do, bills etc to pay / deal with, a house to clean and tidy, I cannot go away and leave a messy house. And after the busyiness in the run up and during holiday club my house looks like a bomb's gone off in it!

Why is it that life's always like that before you're on holiday?

Not long now!

One week till I go and see Janette, Jon and the boys...

Superheroes...

Well holiday club week is over! Our theme was superheroes and we spent the week looking at some of the 'superheroes' in the Bible. Using the book of Judges we thought about how God's people kept disobeying God, so he punished them (rightly so!) by handing them over to an enemy nation, they cried out to God for help and in his great kindness he sent a rescuer / a superhero (a judge) to save them. All was good, whilst the judge ruled over God's people and then the judge died. God's people started to disobey again and so the cycle went round again. The judges were great rescuers but were not perfect. Their rescue didn't last forever. All week we were reminded that we too need a rescuer, but he has to be better than those in Judges. Even the judges were waiting for God's better rescuer to come. And we found out that the perfect rescuer, the best Superhero, is Jesus. His rescue looks weak - I mean, how can someone dying on a cross rescue anyone?! But he overcame death and now lives forever, he offers a rescue that will last forever, unlike the judges.

What a privilege to teach kids these truths!

I had a great week :-) Although lots to think about and organise and at the end of the day the book stopped with me, I was nowhere near as stressed as I've felt during previous holiday clubs which was a definite answer to prayer.

I had a fantastic bunch of people helping me. One thing I just LOVE about holiday club is that the church family, young and old, come together and just get stuck in - doing all sorts of things from making tea, doing games, registering the children, leading groups, doing silly sketches. People willing to give up their time and when asked (!) to make fools of themselves so that we can share the good news of Jesus with the kids.

Here are just some of those brilliant leaders that came along to help.

Another goal...

Another goal for me this year was to, "Buy new TV & digital recorder & fix aerial". I finally had to agree with Bex that a 12" TV in the living room was far too small.

Murray's auntie had a TV which they no longer needed and Jan wondered if I wanted it. Brilliant. Anything has to be better than what I had. So Jan and Murray picked it up and dropped it off at my mum's. I went round on Saturday evening to pick it up. Impossible! It was huge and really heavy. They was no way I was able to lift it on my own. So went back on Sunday with a mate and we managed to get it back to my house. And I now have a new TV! Just need to sort out the aerial, well get someone in to sort out the aerial!

Another 1/2 goal to tick off and it's only February :-)

Something to think about...

"If you live as if God doesn't exist, you'd better be right"

Izzy and 'family time'

Yesterday I spent the day with Izzy and her family.

Izzy is my goddaughter and she is just beautiful. My prayer for her is that she would grow up knowing Jesus as her Saviour and friend.


One thing I love when I go and visit them is being part of 'family time', which is when the whole family reads the Bible together and think about what it means.

Now whilst I was growing up my mum and dad would read the Bible with me, but it wasn't something we did every day. It wasn't a planned thing. They are both Christians and were very happy for me to read the Bible, take me to Sunday school, pay for me to go on Christian camps, they wanted me to learn about Jesus, but often the responsibilty was given over to others to do that.

God is clear in the Bible that it is the parent's who are responsible for their children learning about him. (Although the rest of the church family are involved in supporting them and helping them to do that.)

I experienced my first 'family time' when I was babysitting for some friends a few years ago. Just before they put the children to bed, dad read the Bible gave a one line explanation of how when Jesus calmed the storm it showed that he was God and said a short prayer. Both children were little, Becki couldn't have been older than a couple of months. At one time I would have thought what's the point then? She's so little she doesn't understand. But you see I'd never really taken on what God says what parents should do. I'd never really thought about what the following means in practise:

"Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give to you today are to be upon your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Tie them as symbols on your hands and bind them on your foreheads. Write them on the door-frames of your homes and on your gates." (Deuteronomy chapter 6 verses 4 - 9. The Bible)

"Fathers...bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord." (Ephesians chapter 6 verse 4. The Bible)

Whole books have been written on this subject by people a lot wiser than me. And whilst I am not a parent and may not understand the practicalities of nappies, formula feeds, child trust funds etc I am a Christian and can understand what God says in the Bible about parenting.

The bottom line is this: God says parents have a responsibilty to teach their children about him.

How parents do this will vary from family to family. As I've spent time with Christian families trying to do this...I've observed a few things.

1. It needs to be planned. You plan to take your children to ballet class, football, the park, so you need to plan when are you going to sit with your child and read God's word with them. Otherwise this time will get 'pushed out' of the day by other less important activities.

2. It can be done at any time. Some families read the Bible together at a mealtime. Some have family time just before bed. Some late afternoon when dad gets in from work. Whatever works best for you as a family.

3. Dad takes the lead. Mum is involved but dad initiates. When dad can't be there mum will still ensure that this time happens.

4. When other people are there i.e. babysitters (!) they join in. Family time doesn't get pushed aside because there's someone else around.

5. It takes a few minutes. We're not talking about planning a 20 minute talk.

6. The children know the routine. Parents are modelling how great it is from an early age to read God's word.

7. The children love it :-)

8. And this I think is key: Start early! Don't wait for the child to turn 2, start now! (And if you haven't already started, better late than never)

I know a lot of Christians who have children. And I can tell which families have these daily times as their children know those fundamental Bible truths such as - Who made the world? God. Who is Jesus? King. Why did Jesus have to die? To save us. And whilst they may not yet understand the depths of these truths yet, that's not the parent's job to give understanding, but God's. The prayer is that as they grow God would help them to understand these truths.

When someone becomes a parent they are given lots of advice on the practical side of how to be a parent and taught important things which are essential for the good upbringing of their child. But are they taught by the church what God says a parent should do? I always thought a good parent (in God's eyes) would take their child to Sunday school, send them on camps, say grace before meals (and these are all good things) but it was not my experince, nor did I see the planned daily time modelled in the home. And I can't remember ever hearing it be taught.

"Truth assumed is truth lost", can't remember where that quote came from, but it's true isn't it?

So vicars / ministers are you teaching your congregation (your whole congregation) about parenting? Don't just teach those who are parents / about to become parents - teach the whole church so that they can support families as they try to do this.

And the rest of us...let's be praying for Christian parents as they seek to honour and obey God in the way they bring up their children. And let's encourage them to do so.

P.S. 'Table Talk' is a good resource for families who want to explore the Bible together. Can be done around the table after a meal. Suggested age is 4 to 12 years. Can be purchased from the Good Book Company www.thegoodbook.co.uk. I've never used it but believe it to be a good resource. Any other resources out there that people would recommend?

Fact or opinion?

I have many opinions about things...

It is my opinion that 'Friends' is the best TV programme ever.
It is my opnion that Alice Cooper's song 'Poison' is brilliant.
It is my opinion that pink is a great colour.
It is my opinion that sprouts ruin a Christmas Dinner.
It is my opinion that Brad Pitt, despite being in his 40's, is still gorgeous.

These are my opinions and I appreciate that not everyone would agree with.

At the end of the day those topics can never have a definite answer, I mean, who can decide what is the best TV programme ever and which songs are brilliant? They all depend on the individual person - so for me 'Friends' is the best TV programme but for you it may be 'The West Wing'. They are up for debate.

They are opinions not facts.

Here are some facts:

Matt Le Blanc plays Joey in Friends.
Alice Cooper's dad was a vicar.
My dressing gown is pink.
Sprouts are green.
Brad Pitt is 40 something.

Unlike opinions these are not up for debate. It's just stupid to say well for you Matt Le Blanc plays Joey in Friends but for me it's _____.

And if you're reading this you're no doubt agreeing with me.

So why does this logic go out of the window when you mention Jesus? I was speaking with a friend a while ago and mentioned Jesus. She said, "That's just your opinion that Jesus existed." Well, it can't really be an opinion, can it? Jesus either existed or he didn't. Like Richard the Lionheart either existed or he didn't. It's not an opinion. It's all about the evidence.

So what evidence is there to prove that Jesus lived on earth? (I'm not talking here about what he did) Well there are 100's of historical documents that write about Jesus, that tell of his existence. It's not just in the Bible that you read of Jesus. Josephus was just one 1st century historian who wrote of Jesus - check for yourself if you don't believe me!

Historians show Jesus lived on earth. But many people choose not to believe them as they still insist that Jesus living is just people's opinion. So I want to ask what about other historical figures e.g. Florence Nightingale, Henry VIII, Julius Caesar - did they exist or are they just people's opinions as well? If you believe Henry VIII lived on earth then why not Jesus?

Being looked after my family...

I meet regularly with 3 friends all of whom are in similar jobs to myself. We meet to study, pray and generally support and encourage one another every half term (ish) and I love it. I am thankful to God for this provision, these girls really are a blessing in my life.

With holiday club in a fortnight one of my prayer requests yesterday was that I would stay 'calm', manage to sleep (in previous years this has not been the case leaving me very tired), and not stress. One of them asked, "Do people in your church offer you meals during this week?" (Her experience was that someone turned up with a meal each night during holiday club week so that she was fed without having to make the effort after a busy day to go round to someone's house and be sociable.) Whilst I know there are a couple of families I could ask to go round and eat with, sometimes you just want to be asked. Before I knew it they had invited themselves round on the 2nd day of holiday club to come and cook for me, and said they would bring meals for the following days! What a blessing it is to be looked after by my family :-)

Whilst I am approaching a very busy time in work, it's not always this busy. There are times when I am available to help others who are having a busy period...a new mum, someone doing exams, the youth worker who's preparing for a weekend away, the vicar who has suddenly had to deal with a pastoral situation, doing the shopping for someone who's sick ...the list is endless.

As I am grateful to God for my family who look after me, I need to remind myself to ask the question how can I look after my family...

Profound? Not really!

How are you getting on with your New Year's goals after one month? For the past 4 years every New Year me and Bex sit down and set goals for the year...things we want to do, achieve, complete or start. Last year I had 17 goals and managed to tick off 10, which I thought was okay. This year I have 20.

In the whole area of 'trying to be a better steward of what God has given me', one of my goals this year was to not buy any clothes, shoes, accessories or bags in January or February. I was really challenged when I was packing up my flat to move of how much stuff I had - way more clothes than I need and who needs 6 pairs of boots, well, 7 if you count my hiking boots!!! Rather than spending my money on stuff that I don't need I could put it to better use...

Well so far so good! I haven't actually been shopping apart from to the supermarket. Then it hit me, I realised if I didn't go pottering around the shops then I wouldn't be tempted to buy things that I don't need. Profound? Not really! If I'm tempted by something then why put myself in a place where I can be tempted. I remember when I was younger in youth group someone used the illustration of falling of a cliff - if you don't want to fall off the cliff stay well away from the edge. Don't try and see how close you can get to the edge! That's just stupid!

My New House - the downstairs

So this is my new house....

The Living Room

Look at that lovely fire :-)

Do you like my new curtains and throw (the brown one)? It felt a bit bland in there. Sarah mentioned she was putting coloured curtains up to 'add some colour' in her house, then I realised that was what was making the room feel bland - the cream curtains. It's nice having colour in there.

This is the kitchen which is at the back of the house. I know some people don't like having things stuck up all over the kitchen cupboards but I like it! Reminds me of people and fun times...


You walk though the dining room to get to the kitchen.


I had people coming for tea that night, the table is not always set and in the middle of the room. It usually lives against the wall. Although if we are to 'practise hospitality' then maybe it should be...

Notice my nice Christmas table cloth - I love it!

The junk space under the stairs - every house needs one!

The Latest Blonde Moment

Last week I had a 'blonde moment', although I suppose technically it was more of a 'blonde 7 weeks' rather than just a moment. I feel that in order to explain myself I needed to take pictures. (Would also like to say 'thank you' to all who have reminded me of my many other blonde moments...a lot of which I had forgotten about) In hindsight maybe this wasn't my stupidest after all...

Okay, the background...when I was looking around the house that I am now living in I was very excited to see a fire in the living room.

"How cosy," I thought, "That will be really nice on a cold winter's night to go into the living room, shut the door, and be all snug". The fire was actually one of the things that sold the house to me (my flat where I was previously didn't have one)

On moving day I noticed the fire was electric so I plugged it in and tried to turn it on. Nothing. I moved the grate thing and as you too will see there are no buttons / switches to turn it on. Sarah was around so she came to have a look as well.

So we took the fake log off and the fake coals and had a look around, all we found was a light, but even that wasn't working - need to change the bulb, I thought.

I was a little disappointed that I only had a fake fire in the living room. I kept thinking as I was sitting in the living room - if this was my house I'd get a proper fire put in, not just one that was a light! I mentioned this to several people as they came round. All over Christmas, especially when it was like below freezing and it was really cold, I had to sit with a blanket over me as even with the central heating on it was still really cold.

Then on Thursday Vicky and Catherine, girls who I was a uni with, came for tea. It was a bit chilly and even with the heating on I was concerned that they were cold. Off I went explaining about my fake fire.

Now Vicky wasn't having none of it. She was convinced that people just don't put in fake light fires. They do! I knew that, I had one!!! On her knees, off came the grate, then the log, still couldn't find anything to turn it on, but then she noticed the grill with a 'do not cover' sign on. Look that's where the heat comes out of, she said. I'm still 100% convinced that it was not a proper fire, and a little bit indiginant that she thought I was that stupid that I couldn't find the buttons to turn it on.

Then she tried to lift the hood and look what she found - buttons to turn the light and the fire on! Hmmmm!!!!!!!

So for 7 weeks I have been convinced fake fires exist and have been cold! Oh well - at least now I can enjoy my beautiful, warm fire :-) How cosy it that!!!